Sussex council asked to comment on state plan that doesn’t yet exist
Sussex County Council members expressed frustration at a recent meeting when they were asked to provide questions, comments and concerns about state rules that do not yet exist.
Philip Barnes, an assistant professor at University of Delaware’s Joseph R. Biden Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration, has been meeting with local officials in recent months on behalf of the state.
Among the stops were the July 29 council meeting and an earlier meeting of the county planning & zoning commission in preparation for the state drafting the Delaware Climate Action Plan.
Any municipality with a population over 2,000 is required to have a comprehensive land-use plan, Barnes said. Sussex County’s next update is due by the end of 2028, and work to draft it is expected to begin next year.
State law requires that future plans take into account the Climate Action Plan, which is expected to be completed in the fall or winter. In preparation, Barnes is gathering information from local and county municipalities that he will submit to the state.
“I do understand I am asking you to give comments and feedback on something that doesn’t exist yet, so it’s a bit of a pickle,” he said. “But if you have thoughts or comments or concerns about anything that the state may do or any questions that I could possibly answer, I’d be happy to try to answer that.”
Several council members said it was odd to be asked to comment at this point.
“It would be a lot easier to have thoughts to share if we had this presentation with some information before this moment,” Council Vice President John Rieley said.
“We are at a place where we have no guidance on the action plan or the implementation, any maps, any recommendations, how to assess risks,” Councilman Steve McCarron said. “What models are you using? I’m assuming that the answer is still, ‘none of that exists.’”
“Not yet,” Barnes responded.
He said he expects the state will require comprehensive plans to take into account risks from floods, extreme heat and projected sea-level rise, among other climate risks.
“Resiliency is something that will feature in the next comprehensive plan update,” County Planning & Zoning Director Jamie Whitehouse said.
“It has implications for transportation, not just land use, in terms of floods and mitigating the potential for flood risk,” Whitehouse said. “All of that will be in the resiliency chapter, anyway. This was just an opportunity for council to share any thoughts they might have on what they would expect to see or what council might wish to see in the next comprehensive plan update, beyond the minimum.”
Councilwoman Jane Gruenebaum said while she’s unclear on the state’s plans, the issues expected to be included in the Climate Action Plan are important to the community.
“I’m more concerned about the real threat with regard to sustainability and climate change, and all the challenges we face in keeping our area safe and water potable, et cetera,” Gruenebaum said.
Kevin Conlon came to the Cape Gazette with nearly 40 years of newspaper experience since graduating from St. Bonaventure University in New York with a bachelor's degree in mass communication. He reports on Sussex County government and other assignments as needed.
His career spans working as a reporter and editor at daily newspapers in upstate New York, including The Daily Gazette in Schenectady. He comes to the Cape Gazette from the Cortland Standard, where he was an editor for more than 25 years, and in recent years also contributed as a columnist and opinion page writer. He and his staff won regional and state writing awards.
Conlon was relocating to Lewes when he came across an advertisement for a reporter job at the Cape Gazette, and the decision to pursue it paid off. His new position gives him an opportunity to stay in a career that he loves, covering local news for an independently owned newspaper.
Conlon is the father of seven children and grandfather to two young boys. In his spare time, he trains for and competes in triathlons and other races. Now settling into the Cape Region, he is searching out hilly trails and roads with wide shoulders. He is a fan of St. Bonaventure sports, especially rugby and basketball, as well as following the Mets, Steelers and Celtics.
